The Old Testament scripture was authored in the Hebrew language and the New Testament in Greek. I read neither of these languages. I am therefore a debtor to those trained and familiarized in these ancient languages who possess the scholastic abilities to render our English translation. The translators of the King James Version were of the highest scholastic caliber, however, scholastic ability alone is not the only, nor necessarily the most important criteria to consider when evaluating a Bible translation. In my opinion, the translator’s attitude toward the Scripture he is translating, is of greater importance than his scholastic abilities. Here again, the translators of the King James Version are unparalleled by any subsequent group of men assembled for the same purpose. They were pious men and had reverential respect for the word of God. In a subsequent article I intend to explore this human dimension of English Bible Versions in greater depth. For the present I will direct my attention to the manuscripts (documents) our English versions are derived from.

A discussion of manuscripts must necessarily include some consideration into the method or means by which they have been Preserved. As with most discussions, one must begin with a premise. My premise is: Scripture preservation has occurred by the will and purpose of Him who authored the same. Let it be observed that those who are opposed to the teaching of Divine Preservation of Scripture must also begin with a premise; theirs will just be a different premise. I feel strongly that my premise is both reasonable and scriptural. John Burgon, the able and scholarly critic wrote over a hundred years ago:
"If you and I believe that the original writings of the Scriptures were verbally inspired by God, then of necessity they must have been providentially preserved through the ages."

Method Of Preservation-- Providential
Unlike the original transmission of Scripture which was by Inspiration and direct agency of the Holy Spirit, God's method of preserving His word has been Providential. In His wisdom God has provided a sufficient means for preserving the Scripture through all ages. How was this accomplished?

I. Old Testament
The Old Testament was given in the Hebrew language and preserved in the Masoretic Text. This is the Hebrew text used by the translators of the 1611 King James Version. The Old Testament Scriptures were preserved--Not by archiving the original text, But by faithful copy of the originals. D.B. Loughran writes:

"Before the original masters completely disintegrated they were carefully copied. The Almighty, who had initially inspired their production, then moved His faithful followers, first the Aaronic Priests and later the Masorites, to make copies of the originals. Thus began the work of providential preservation." Bible Versions, by Elder D B Loughran

It is known by those familiar with textual criticism that the Masorites went to unusual lengths to maintain accurate copies of the Hebrew text. D.B. Loughran further states:

"In his book, Story of Our English Bible, W Scott wrote, over a hundred years ago, concerning the reliability of the copies made by these faithful priests and scribes. 'It is well known that among the Jews it was the profession of the Masorites, or doctors of tradition, to transcribe the scriptures. We know to what extent these indefatigable scholars carried their respect for the letter; and when we read the rules under which their labours were carried on, we understand the use that the providence of God (who had 'confided his oracles to the Jews') made of their superstition. They reckoned the number of verses, words, and letters in each book. They tell us, for instance, that the letter A occurs forty-two thousand three hundred and seventy-seven times in the Bible; the letter B thirty-eight thousand two hundred and eighteen times; and so on to the end. They were scrupulous of changing the position even of a letter, though evidently misplaced, but limited themselves to noting in the margin, supposing some mystery was involved. They tell us which is the middle letter of the Pentateuch, as well as of each of the books of which it is composed. They never allowed themselves to correct their manuscript; and if any mistake escaped them, they rejected the papyrus or the skin which they had blemished, and recommenced upon a fresh one; for they were equally interdicted from even correcting one of their own errors, and from retaining for their sacred volume a single parchment or skin in which an error had been made...'

Era of hand copied texts ends
Two inventions separate our modern world from the ancient world; paper and the printing press. In ancient times writing was done by hand on parchment (animal skins) and papyrus (a reed-like fibrous plant). The Chinese had invented paper in the 1st or 2nd century and managed to keep it a secret from the rest of the world until the 12th century. The second great step forward occurred about 1450 when Johann Guttenberg invented the moveable type printing press; thus began modern printing and publishing. This is perhaps the most important invention ever made and provided the way to mass produce the Bible and other literature. The era of hand copied manuscripts had ended.

Ben Chayyim Masoretic Text
Dr. Thomas Cassidy states in an essay entitled, Textual Criticism:
"In 1516, Daniel Bomberg published a text of the Old Testament under the name "First Rabbinic Bible." This text was followed in 1524 by a second edition that had been compiled from ancient manuscripts by a Hebrew scholar and converted Jewish Rabbi named Abraham Ben Chayyim. Today this work is called the Ben Chayyim Masoretic Text, and is the text that underlies the Old Testament of the King James Bible."

Modern Versions do not use the Masoretic Text
The modern Bible versions do not use the Hebrew Masoretic Text. Instead, they use the Leningrad Manuscript (B19a or "L") edited by Ben Asher, Or the Septuagint (LXX), a corrupt Greek version of the Old Testament.

In his essay entitled, The Four-fold Superiority Of The King James Version , Dr. D.A. Waite develops a powerful argument for the superiority of the KJV over other English versions. One of his arguments centers around the inferior Hebrew texts the modern translators chose to use. He states:

“Both of these false Biblia Hebraica (BHK & BHS) Hebrew texts offer in their footnotes about fifteen to twenty suggested changes per page. This adds up to about 20,000 to 30,000 changes in the entire Hebrew Old Testament text. One or the other of these false Hebrew texts, either BHK or BHS, are used as the basis for the O.T. in all modern versions, as can be shown by reading their introductory pages. How many of these changes in the Hebrew text are you ready to accept?
My personal belief is that the Traditional Masoretic Hebrew text that underlies the KJV is not only the closest to the original autographs, but that it is IDENTICAL to those original autographs.”

Summary
Of the many English Versions available today, only the King James Version (1611) consistently follows the superior Traditional Masoretic Hebrew text. The meticulous methods used by the Masorites in making copies of the Old Testament Hebrew Text afford strong, credible evidence that God’s promise to preserve His Word (Ps.12:6-7) has not failed.

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